UFC 3 Star Emmanuel Yarborough Reported Dead

Sumo wrestler and one of the stars of UFC 3, Emmanuel Yarborough, is reported to have passed away at the age of 51. Yarborough, regarded as 'The World's Largest Athlete, finished his MMA career with a record of 1-2-0. Emmanuel Yarborough was the second- and by far the largest- sumo practitioner ever to compete in the UFC. In the early, rule free, days of the sport, he fought karate practitioner Keith Hackney at UFC 3. Hackney, some 400 pounds lighter than Yarborough, was in fact thrown through the cage door by his gargantuan opponent, before recovering his composure to win the match by TKO in just the second minute. After the fight Yarborough went on to enjoy a career in professional wrestling and acting. He also fought twice further in mixed martial arts- perhaps predictably- in Japan, against far smaller opposition. He is the only known fighter to have a submission via 'smothering' on his record, in his only professional victory. Yarborough's sole UFC bout is regarded among the most iconic of the sports formative years, as competitors fought in a 'no rules' and no weight-classes tournament format to determine whose martial art was superior. The sad news, report by My MMA News contained no details as to the details of Yarborough's passing.